Saudi woman in the driver's seat. Pic: CNNRIYADH: Saudi women are increasingly getting behind the wheel in defiance of a driving ban ahead of a nationwide campaign planned by female activists for later this month, witnesses said.

A video posted on social networks this week shows a fully veiled woman driving in Riyadh as male motorists and families gave her the “thumbs up” in support.

“Several women are now driving but not being filmed,” said activist Khulud al-Fahd.

“I saw a woman in (the eastern city of) Khobar driving. This is becoming more acceptable and is no longer rejected as it once was,” she told AFP.

Residents of the Red Sea port of Jeddah say that seeing women drive is becoming increasingly common in the country’s commercial capital known for being more socially open than other regions of the ultra-conservative kingdom.